The term evil empire was applied to the Soviet Union by U.S. President Ronald Reagan during the latter stages of the Cold War.
Reagan first used the term in his speech to the British House of Commons on June 8, 1982.
Some writers consider the term a reference to the Star Wars series of movies, which pitted the Rebel Alliance against the Empire of the evil Darth Vader.
Some radicals have turned this term against the United States.
Within hacker culture, the term is sometimes used referring to the software company Microsoft.
See: nuclear deterrent[?], Gorbachev
For the album by Rage Against the Machine, see Evil Empire (album).
